START ME UP

“Boarded Up” by James Reynolds

This is a unique way to use street art to “improve” the visual neighborhood; When I first looked at it, I was reminded of the “Broken Windows” theory which states that:

“A successful strategy for preventing vandalism, is to fix the problems when they are small. Repair the broken windows within a short time, say, a day or a week, and the tendency is that vandals are much less likely to break more windows or do further damage. Clean up the sidewalk every day, and the tendency is for litter not to accumulate (or for the rate of littering to be much less). Problems do not escalate and thus respectable residents do not flee a neighborhood.

The theory thus makes two major claims: that further petty crime and low-level anti-social behavior will be deterred, and that major crime will, as a result, be prevented.”

I would be interested to see what actual effects this art has on the communities Mr. Reynolds is installing them in. Though not a sustainable or long lasting solution, maybe his attemps to temporarily “repair” the building will inspire potential building owners to move in and revitalize the community.

Image reblogged from tumblelikeyougiveadamn